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From: jpo@panda.UUCP (Joseph O'Connor)
Newsgroups: net.bicycle
Subject: Re: Ultra freewheels - good or bad?
Message-ID: <430@panda.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 4-Apr-85 08:25:46 EST
Article-I.D.: panda.430
Posted: Thu Apr  4 08:25:46 1985
Date-Received: Sun, 7-Apr-85 06:58:39 EST
References: <50@uw-june>
Organization: GenRad, Inc., Concord, Mass.
Lines: 50

> I'd like to draw on the collective experience of net.bicycle concerning
> freewheels shifting performance.
> 
> I'm about to completely replace my drivetrain.  The gear setup I am building
> is an ultra-wide range touring setup (about 22-102 gear inches).  Obviously,
> this requires a pretty wide range of cogs and chainwheels (26-49 triple on the 
> front and 13-30 on the rear).  It's safe to say that I'll be giving the 
> derailleurs a pretty good workout on this!
> 
> The question is:  will I experience a noticeable degradation in shifting
> ease if I use a narrow-spaced freewheel (i.e., Suntour ultra-6) as opposed
> to one with standard spacing?  Will it be a (significantly more) tedious and 
> frustrating job trying to change gears on an 18-speed as opposed to a 15-speed?
> 
> I'd like to here from people who have used BOTH standard- and narrow- spaced
> freewheels, and your impressions.
> 
> P.S.  I've been diddling around with a PASCAL program that plots (on a 
> logarithmic scale, of course) a given gear setup, and also is able to "suggest"
> the proper chainwheels to obtain a half-step plus granny setup from a
> given freewheel.  (If any of you have spent time plotting gear ratios, you
> know how tedious it can be.)  Anybody interested in being a "Beta-site" for 
> this *wonderful* tool before I post it to the net, please mail me a request
> and I'll send you the source.
> 
> 			Dave Wagner
> 			University of Washington Comp Sci Department
> 			wagner@{uw-june.arpa|washington.arpa}
> 			{ihnp4|decvax|ucbvax}!uw-beaver!uw-june!wagner
> 
> "Oh no!  I've got . . . . .   HAPPY FEET!"

*** REPLACE THIS LINE WITH YOUR MESSAGE ***
I have used Suntour Ultra type freewheels on various bicycles but I'm now using
a Regina (sp?) freewheel on my bikes.  There two reasons why I've done this:

1. Freewheels with two-pronged adapters can be difficult to remov after hard
riding. Regina's are splined and I have never had any real difficulty
removing them.

2. Regina Oro's seem to stand up better to the beating that freewheels used
by a racer must take.  I figure your wide range of gears indicates use for
loaded touring so you would probably experience the same type of wear.


Another point -- I built a set of gears similar to this and found the low
gears ( 29 inch ) rather useless for climbing. I guess I prefer to suffer
and die quickly rather than struggle in pain. :-)


			Joe